Never Trust The Clippers
I have two rules when it comes to the NBA: Never watch the Hornets after February, and never trust the Clippers. It’s a rule because the Clippers have tested me over the years and, if I’m not careful, I might just be lulled into a false sense of security.
There was that two-month stretch in the 2023-24 season where they went 26-5, Kawhi Leonard was healthy and dominating, and you couldn’t go two minutes into any Clippers broadcast without being reminded that James Harden spent extra time after practice working with Ivica Zubac on their two-man game.
Then there was last season, when the Clippers surged into the playoffs with healthy stars, a deep roster and the league’s fourth-best net rating after the All-Star break.
Both times, they lost in the first round as Leonard and Harden pulled the rug out from under their supporters.
Kawhi couldn’t finish the 2023-24 series vs the Mavericks and broke down toward the end of their seven-game series against the Nuggets in May. And while Harden was at least healthy, the Clippers might have been better off if he hadn’t been. He shot 7-for-28 in the final two games against Dallas and, not to be outdone, sleepwalked into a 2-for-8 no-show against Denver to punctuate this last postseason.
This is why you can’t trust the Clippers. No matter what they do in the regular season, no matter how refreshed Kawhi might look or whatever stories are written that say some form of No, you’re wrong, Harden is actually a great teammate, they will always let you down.
But, man, I’m being tested again.
Just look at this offseason the Clippers are having.
First, they stole Brook Lopez from the Bucks (and Lakers?) to give them the best backup center in the league. Harden’s chemistry with Zubac isn’t just a story – it’s real. Those two form one of the best pick-and-roll duos in the league, and Clippers coach Ty Lue will continue to staple their minutes together. Meanwhile, we’ve seen Kawhi thrive with high-feel centers who can space the floor like Lopez in the past. He made music with Marc Gasol during Toronto’s 2019 title run. Lue would be smart to align their minutes, too.
Trading away Norm Powell to get John Collins wasn’t just good business to keep the 2027 books clean, it also filled a need. The Clippers didn’t have a true 4 who could space the floor and rebound next to Zubac, and, in Collins, they at least got one in theory. I’m betting on a big year from him after being saved from the Utah Jazz wilderness.
And then there were the headline additions. Bradley Beal figures to backfill the Powell minutes. Hear me out, Beal is still a good player! Beal making $50 million with a no-trade clause is one thing, but Beal playing on an exception contract for a team that isn’t actively trying to run him out of town is another.
Here’s a random list of players set to make more than Beal’s $5.3 million this season: Dario Saric, Dalen Terry, Day’Ron Sharpe, Jevon Carter and Zeke Nnaji.
It was just two years ago (again, before the Suns tried to make him so miserable that he would waive his no-trade clause) that Beal scored 18.2 points per game and shot 43% from 3-point range. If he comes close to those averages again, he’ll be on one of the best bargain contracts in the NBA.
Finally, there’s Chris Paul. There are two parts to this story: the emotional aspect and the basketball fit. Emotionally, this reunion slaps. Paul will go into the Hall of Fame as a Clipper, and now he likely gets to end his career with the team he made relevant and had his best seasons with.
As for the basketball fit, there are things I like and things I don’t like. I like that it gives Lue another button to push on offense. The Clippers' offense last season toggled between Harden pick-and-rolls and Kawhi post-ups, and that was really it. Adding Paul gives Lue another table-setter who can read and react to a defense. (Could Paul and Collins ignite Lob City 2.0?!)
But then you look at the fact that this is now the oldest roster in the NBA. There are a bunch of names you like on good contracts, but it’s a bit unsettling how much it seems like the Clippers are steering away from the defensive identity that made them special last season.
Collins, Beal and Paul were cheap additions, but they’ll be taking minutes away from Derrick Jones Jr. and Kris Dunn – two players who were integral to LA’s third-ranked defense.
It’s difficult to parse the names from the actual on-court impact. It’s starting to feel like the Doc Rivers Clippers that flipped through names like Hedo Turkoglu, Danny Granger and Paul Pierce instead of developing talent to play alongside their stars.
These Clippers haven’t quite hit that level of swiping right, but they’ve downloaded the app and set up their profile.
That said, I look at this roster, and there’s a lot to like! They can play big with Collins and Zubac, they can play small with Kawhi at the 4 or even Nic Batum at the 5, they can protect the rim for 48 minutes, they have multiple ball-handlers, plenty of shooting, and players who can scale up if one (or both) of the stars get hurt.
The Clippers have put together one of the best “who's stopping this team” graphics in the league. They are versatile, deep and experienced. They are also old, and, no matter how long you stare at the depth chart, there are still two names at the top that don’t inspire much confidence.
Still, Kawhi actually finished the year healthy, which is a positive. And now he has as much help as he’s ever had in Los Angeles. This is easily the deepest Clippers team since Kawhi signed in 2019. Nobody will want to see these Clippers in the playoffs. If the bracket breaks right, why couldn’t they make a run?
No!
Stop!
Never trust the Clippers. Never trust the Clippers. Never trust the Clippers.